Magnets as Flowers
Magnetic Fields (1969)
Metal, magnets, wire
Early in his career, Taskis began experiementing with how to use energy and movement in sculpture. 'What interested me was to put into iron sculpture a new, continuous, and live force... The result was in no way a graphic representation of a force but the force itself'. Artist Marcel Duchamp memorably described Takis as the 'happy ploughman of the magnetic fields'. Here a large grouping of flower-like sculptures are brought to life by the magnetic pendulums that swing overhead. This is the first time it has been displayed since the 1970s.
[Tate Modern]
Takis
(July – October 2019)
Over a 70-year career, Takis (Panayiotis Vassilakis, 1925–2019) created some of the most innovative art of the 20th century.
Takis sought out the essential poetry and beauty of the electromagnetic universe. He was one of the most original artistic voices in Europe from the 1960s and remained a pioneering figure throughout his life.
This the largest exhibition of Takis's work ever held in the UK, bringing together over 70 works. Throughout his career he produced antennae-like sculptures called Signals, and musical devices using magnets, electricity and viewer participation to generate resonant and random sounds. Such inventions earned Takis the admiration of the international avant-garde, ranging from the American Beat poets to artists such as Marcel Duchamp.
[Tate Modern]
Taken in Tate Modern
Magnets as Flowers
Magnetic Fields (1969)
Metal, magnets, wire
Early in his career, Taskis began experiementing with how to use energy and movement in sculpture. 'What interested me was to put into iron sculpture a new, continuous, and live force... The result was in no way a graphic representation of a force but the force itself'. Artist Marcel Duchamp memorably described Takis as the 'happy ploughman of the magnetic fields'. Here a large grouping of flower-like sculptures are brought to life by the magnetic pendulums that swing overhead. This is the first time it has been displayed since the 1970s.
[Tate Modern]
Takis
(July – October 2019)
Over a 70-year career, Takis (Panayiotis Vassilakis, 1925–2019) created some of the most innovative art of the 20th century.
Takis sought out the essential poetry and beauty of the electromagnetic universe. He was one of the most original artistic voices in Europe from the 1960s and remained a pioneering figure throughout his life.
This the largest exhibition of Takis's work ever held in the UK, bringing together over 70 works. Throughout his career he produced antennae-like sculptures called Signals, and musical devices using magnets, electricity and viewer participation to generate resonant and random sounds. Such inventions earned Takis the admiration of the international avant-garde, ranging from the American Beat poets to artists such as Marcel Duchamp.
[Tate Modern]
Taken in Tate Modern